Why snakes shed their skin?

Snakes have dry, smooth skin, covered in a network of overlapping scales. Contrary to popular belief, it’s neither wet nor slippery. The skin serves many critical functions: it provides locomotion, protects the body, retains moisture, aids in camouflage, warns away predators (as in the case of a rattle), and even sometimes attracts prey. Their long, limbless bodies come in a variety of different sizes and colors, but all of them share a similar feature: they shed their skin at regular intervals throughout the year.

The snake will start to wriggle out of the outer layer of skin. It slithers against rocks, trees, and plants. Some snakes will even go for a swim to help escape their old skin. In a snake’s shedded skin, we can see all the details of the original skin. 

When a snake gets ready to shed, its eyes turn a milky color. This is because a new layer of skin forms over the eyes, too. It can’t see very well. It may even try to find a place to hide out until it starts shedding. For that to happen, it needs to find something to help break a part of the skin up near its snout. Something like a stick or a rock.

For most snakes, that’s the end of it. At least, until the next time they shed. That’s usually in a year or two. But rattlesnakes are a little different.

Snakes shed quite frequently, but exactly how often depends on the species, the quantity and quality of food it eats, and, most of all, the age of the reptile. The average is two to four times per year, but young snakes, since they are growing more rapidly, may shed their skins every two weeks. When they reach adulthood, however, growth will have slowed, and they may only do it twice a year.